Zombies & vampires

Days were grey and uniform, blending together in Dale's mind. In the mornings, they tried to get some sleep. The zombies became lethargic by daylight, unable to scramble up to Dale's neighbours' treehouse that had become their shelter, now that their neighbours, along with everyone else, were long gone in every way that mattered. The zombies still assembled around the tree, but they were sluggish enough Dale could usually fight their way through them in the afternoon, going on a raid for whatever food was left in the supermarkets. They had tried to get their hands on some survivalist books in the abandoned bookstores, but they still knew desperately little. Then, they had to make sure they returned to the safety of their treehouse before nightfall. The zombies would have dispersed, moving in a general Dale direction all day but never catching up to them, but come darkness, the real horror began. They would have to move soon; they were, it appeared, the only living human left here, and sooner or later they would have attracted every zombie for miles around. Every night, it became harder to fight off the horde trying to get to them with almost-human vigour, and even fewer inhibitions. They had put off leaving what little comfort their home could offer, but they knew they were running out of time. They had scouted out an unlocked bicycle for the task, but they didn't know where to go, not really. This morning, exhausted to the bone by the time dawn finally broke, their arms sore from swinging their feeble baseball bat all night to keep them from climbing in, a vicious, throbbing scratch down their leg from where one had almost succeeded, Dale decided the day had finally come. They needed rest, but they also needed the daylight, so after a breakfast of canned peaches - the last they had left - they packed what little they found useful anymore into their backpack, and grabbed their bat. For a few minutes, they stared at the house that had once been their home before they climbed down from what had been their shalter for the last few months. They soaked up the look of the familiar streets under the dull grey sky one last time as they walked toward the bicycle. And then they were on their way. Making it to the next small town over should be doable in a day. They had overestimated their speed, they were so tired, but they were still making good progress. Once they had reached the outskirts of the city, it became eerily peaceful. All the zombies had been attracted to - if not created in - the city, and now all they heard was the birds and bugs going about their business as if humanity never mattered at all. They reached the town they had aimed for with barely an hour of daylight left. They had hoped for more time to find shelter, but they would have to make do. They'd have to. They were so tired the temptation was great to just drop in the nearest sort-of enclosed space and go to sleep, but they couldn't do that. They had made it so far. They were the last person to remember all their friends and family. They'd have to find a good spot, and survive the night, and then they could rest. They tried not to let their exhaustion cloud their judgment, but they couldn't be sure when they stumbled up the staircase of an apartment building whose front door hadn't been properly closed, their injured leg aching. Several of the apartment doors had been broken open as well, and Dale forced themself to check each apartment out. In the end, they simply settled for the one highest up. They could see if there was anything in favour of the others when they had gotten some sleep. The bathroom door was still intact, and it locked just fine. This would do. Dale dropped their backpack on the floor, put on their headlamp, and took up their baseball bat. They hoped it wouldn't be bad. Maybe, over the course of the past few weeks, all the zombies had wandered from here to where they'd come from. Maybe they weren't the only survivor in this town. The night started out so quiet keeping the light on felt like a waste of battery, but they couldn't be caught off guard. And sure enough, after some time, they heard tell-tale steps outside, coming up the staircase. To their surprise, those sounds were followed by something of a scuffle, and then a minute of quiet. Then, something slammed into the bathroom door. The door cracked open far too easily. This wasn't a zombie, not even many zombies. The creature that entered did so with a grace that had nothing to do with the scrambling fervour Dale was used to. Its eyes flashed in Dale's direction. Dale stumbled away from the door until their back hit the wall, gripping their baseball bat with white knuckles. Fangs glinted in the weak light of their headlamp. A vampire. And they had been fool enough to believe things couldn't get worse. [[Fight back against the vampire]] [[Try to run from the vampire]] [[Beg for your life]]

There was no point. Their bat had barely been able to hold off the zombies, they stood no chance against a vampire. Even knowing it was just as pointless in the face of a monster, Dale dropped to their knees. "Please no." They barely managed more than a whisper. "Please don't kill me. Please - I-" I have nothing left but me. They weren't expecting much, but they especially weren't expecting what they got. The vampire in front of them laughed, although there was an edge to it - cruelty, maybe, or condescension. Its voice was surprisingly soft when it spoke. "We will not kill you, little human." Dale knelt there, frozen, unable to process what they just heard before the vampire swiftly closed the distance between them, grabbed them, pushed them against the wall with so much force they dropped the bat they had been pointlessly clinging on to. The vampire's fangs pierced their neck, and Dale started screaming. They were going to die. Pure instinct had them push back against the vampire, succeeding only in making it easily pin their hands to the wall while it drank its fill, killing them- The panicked thoughts swirling through Dale's head were only interrupted by something worse. Behind the vampire sucking them dry, pulling their lifeblood painfully from their veins, there was another. That was when Dale started to process what the vampire had said. We. Even if they survived this first attack- We will not kill you. It made no sense, they couldn't possibly survive being sucked dry by two- Another vampire stepped into the doorframe. "No," Dale whispered, tearing up. "No, please-" The other vampires looked even worse than the first - less controlled, teeth bared as if ready to attack. Then, when they least expected it, the vampire at their neck withdrew, its fangs painfully pulling from Dale's skin, and they cried out again. They dropped back down onto their knees when the monster let go of them, their head spinning. "Sire?" the second vampire, once a short blonde woman, snarled, its eyes fixed on Dale. "Not now," the first replied sharply. "We must not kill it, you know that, Elena." The blonde hissed in response, but put up no fight. The first one - the sire of the group, and the thought that this one had actually turned the others from humans made it all the more terrifying - turned back to Dale. "You're coming with us." It offered a hand. [[Take its hand and cooperate]] [[Refuse to take its hand]]

Dale's instincts kicked in, and before they could think things through, they had dashed past the vampire, baffled when it worked, the vampire's arms merely brushing them despite the creature's superhuman speed. They raced for the door, they didn't have much of a chance out there but if they stayed here, they would die for certain- When they rushed through the door, they slammed into something that didn't give. Before they could figure out what, they were grabbed forcefully, cruel hands bruising their arm on one side and ribs on the other. Sharp teeth sunk into their neck - no, no, they had escaped - more hands grabbed onto them, pulling at them as they struggled- "Drop it!" The voice carried such authority that even Dale almost dropped their bat. They were more surprised the vampires holding on to them obeyed. They crumpled on the floor, the bite on their neck sending sharp pain through them, their head dizzy, their little lamp flickering, as they turned their head, from - from one vampire to the next. They spotted at least four, and that was only in their little circle of light. They were surrounded, surrounded by sharp, bared teeth. Yet none of them made another attack. The one that had cornered them in the bathroom appeared in the circle, the others making room for it immediately. Dale tried to scramble away, but there was nowhere to scramble to, they could only scream when they were picked up with ease. "Athanasia!" the vampire hissed. "How much did you take?" Another one of the vampires - once a curly-haired young woman - behind it fidgeted, clearly intimidated, even with the first one's back turned on it. "Too - too much for another feeding, sire. I'm, I'm sorry, sire, it was your right-" The vampire holding Dale in its iron grip - the sire of the group, and the thought that this one had actually turned the others from humans made it all the more terrifying - silenced the other with a hiss. "It is done now. Don't you dare feed from them again without permission." "Yes, sire," the other muttered, shrinking in on itself. It was odd, seeing such a terrifying creature so scared. "Let's move," the sire said when there was noise down the hall. "Maybe we can still avoid them. Take its backpack, Thana." It pulled Dale along by the arm as the group moved towards the exit. Out where the zombies were. Even being terrified, Dale couldn't help appreciate the fact they were alive, and they very much intended to stay that way. [[Argue it's safer in here for the night]] [[Go along quietly and hope for the best]]